Contents 1) Quotes 2) Excerpts from Dr.Tharoor 3) External speakers list 4) A glimpse of the day 5) Undeterred What do you expect out of this session? Debate, Discussion, Deliberation - Medhansh, INC Interesting and engaging discussion - Arhaan, INC Platform to interact with politically inclined students from across the country -Kuber, INC I expect to learn about how the leaders of our country formulate policies -Krishnam, BJP To finally come up with a resolution for the asylum problem - Angie, BJP I want a prize...for free -Ayush, Shiv Sena Way better than any MUN! - Raghav, TDP Quotes
Excerpts from Dr.Tharoor Members of the Secretariat met with acclaimed diplomat and politician Dr. Shashi Tharoor at his residence to discuss the Asylum Bill. Secretariat : Given the growing population of India and the limited government resources, how liberal do you think we should be while accepting asylum seekers? Dr. Shashi Tharoor : It s interesting how we ve never asked ourselves this question. When we were accepting refugees going more than 3000 years, it was just something we did- it was a decent thing to do. Look at the fact that the Jewish refugees fleeing the attacks of the Babylonians around the 500 BC or the Romans destroying the second temple in the 1st Century BC, all came to Kerala and were cheerfully accepted with no discrimination. That shows you how we were. We accepted the christians who came in the 1st Century or the Parsis who came in the 7th century. Our tradition is not based on resources, because we have wisely assumed that people will be able to take care of themselves, in fact they want to take care of themselves, no one is coming because they will get handouts from welfare states. Secondly, with a population of 1.3 billion, how many people does it take to feel the pinch? We have actually welcomed the single largest refugee movement in human history- the ten million Bangladeshis in 1971 and the East Pakistanis when they were. Some of them went back, while some of then didn t. Comparatively, with a population of 600 million, ten million was a much more significant percentage. Today, we have no refugee case that large if you look at the last large refugee cases which have come in since then- the Tamils and the Sri Lankan Tamils, some Nepalese coming in during the civil war. Most of the cases we are talking about are a handful of people- there s no real agreement as to how many Rohingyas there are, but whatever the number is, its barely a drop in the bucket. If you look at the Tibetans in the last 50 years, they are a distinctive group, yet completely and fully accepted. I am always troubled when India acts like some sort of a tiny island state that is about to get overwhelmed by a foreign shore. We are a big country- we should have a big heart to go with.
Secretariat : In views of particular case laws, what stance do you think the government should take on say, Brahmagupti case in 2011, the reason you ve drafted the Asylum Bill 2015? Dr. Shashi Tharoor : Well, I just feel that the Brahmagupti case acts as the most suitable peg to hang the argument on, as the media articles said that he applied for Asylum and the Prime minister called panic meetings regarding the case, the government claims that the media was false and he never applied. We ll never know the truth. But he was gently, quietly persuaded to withdraw his application. But at least at that time it was a reminder that we did not have an established asylum procedure.
External Speakers list Jyotiraditya Madavrao Scindia Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia is a Member of Parliament, representing the Guna constituency in the state of Madhya Pradesh. He is a member of the Indian National Congress. Jitendra Singh Jitendra Singh is the former Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports and the Minister of State for Defence, Government of India. Formerly, Jitendra Singh was the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Government of India; a position that he assumed in July 2011. Malvika Singh Malvika Singh is the publisher of Seminar, a prestigious monthly magazine of ideas and alternatives, founded in 1959 and a columnist for The Telegraph. She is also Editorial Consultant at Harmony magazine. She has also written numerous books.
Sanjay Jha Sanjay Jha is the Executive Director of the world-famous Dale Carnegie Training operations in India, which has a global experience of having worked with over 400 of the Top Fortune 500 companies. Manish Tewari Manish Tewari is an Indian politician, who was Union Minister of State (Independent charge), Minister of Information and Broadcasting and a Member of Parliament from Ludhiana. He is a lawyer by qualification and has practised in the Supreme Court of India as well as the Delhi High Court. Gaurav Gogoi Gaurav Gogoi is an active Indian politician and member of parliament from the Kaliabor Constituency in Assam. Before actively joining politics, Mr.Gogoi also worked for a Delhi based NGO called Pravah. He has also generously agreed to take up and review the Right to Privacy amendment drafted at the 4th session of I-Parliament.
A glimpse of the day
Undeterred By Zoraver Mehta Circumventing freely amongst us all Undeterred. Even in squares in China. Cohen rings the bell that rings While Gandhi strikes up the March, The freedom eagle sings Undeterred. Even on the doors of old churches in Germany. You may tear us down, take away the light In Saudi Arabia, North Korea, in Rwanda We will fight Undeterred. Even with ghosts in Syria. Some animals still remain more equal Generally speaking in councils and assemblies, Where they fight for equality. Undeterred. Even in South Sudan. You may hear voices and choose not to care From parliaments and senates heard -Unheard from Indian wells of despair. Undeterred. Even in jungles in Mayanmar. Still-brothers, an ode we sing, For reality bright as imagination to bring, Come what may, We stand strong, united, responsible Undeterred. Even today.